One of the things that I enjoy about ministering to college students is walking with students as they are preparing to make big life decisions.
Young people can tell they are getting older based on the amount of decisions they make that have an impact on the rest of their lives. This begins to become especially true in college.
It is not uncommon for me or others who work with college students to help guide students through decisions about their major, relationships or even career paths. I also get to help students talk through the idea of going on the mission field or going into ministry.
One of the things that often holds students back is fear of the unknown. This manifests itself in several different ways.
There can be the unknown of going to a new place. There can be the unknown of ending a relationship or choosing a new future career path. All of these unknowns can be scary.
There is another unknown that students fear. This is the unknown of how they will handle a new situation.
Often, students feel that God is calling them to take a big step, but they are scared to take it. They are scared because they aren’t confident enough in themselves to take that big step.
In Scripture, we see something similar with Moses. In Exodus 3, Moses was just minding his business tending his sheep when he saw a burning bush. Then everything changed.
The bush was not just a bush. It was the very presence of God.
God had come to Moses to call him to do something big. Moses was to go to Pharaoh, the king of the most powerful kingdom, and tell him that he was to let the Israelite slaves go free.
Moses was understandably reluctant to do this. His reluctance was based on his opinion of himself.
In Exodus 3:11, Moses asks God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”
This is a fair question. The power of Pharaoh was world renowned. Moses wanted to know who he was to do this. God never answers his question.
God responds in verse 12, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you; when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”
All God tells Moses is that He would be with Moses, and that Moses would succeed. Why would he succeed, because God was with Him.
In life when we doubt we can do big things for God, we have to remember that who we are does not matter. It does not matter if we think we are great or not. It matters who God is and that He is with us.
Bee-Attitude
Blessed is the one who depends on God in the unknown.
Gabe Thomas
Gabe Thomas is the Campus Minister for the Baptist Collegiate Ministry at Gordon State College. He also serves as the student pastor at Maynard Baptist Church in Forsyth. He is married to his wife Morgan and together they have two daughters, Amelia and Piper.
